JPH05251140A - Connector for flat cable - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To provide a connector for a flat cable, which can be arranged in a printed board in high density, applicable for even flat cables of different widthes, endurable, and adequate for a module structure. CONSTITUTION:A metallic cover 4 of an approximately U-shape, is surfacemounted on a printed board 2, and a plurality of module type housings 6 are arranged therein in intimate contact one with the other. The housings 6 are fixed to a circuit board 2 at the tie-in part of terminals held therein. A slider 10 containing an opening 30 for insertion of a flat cable is slidably arranged on the housings 6 at the front surface of the housings 6. The slider 10 is fixed together with the falt cable on the housings 6 in such a way that its engaging part 18 and a latch arm 8 integrally formed on the metallic cover 4 are engaged with each other.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a connector, and more particularly to a connector for connecting a flat cable to a circuit board.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art When connecting a flat cable such as an FPC (flexible printed circuit board) or FFC (flexible flat cable) to a circuit board, a connector housing fixed to the circuit board is usually used. Connection is made.

To fix the housing of a surface mount (SMT) type connector to a circuit board, a conventional example is known as a connector 100 disclosed in Japanese Utility Model Laid-Open No. 63-47579 shown in FIG. In this connector 100, the terminals inside the housing 102
101 tine 104 is a land formed on the circuit board 106.
Solder to 108. However, in this case, a load is applied to the tine portion 104 of the terminal when the mating connector is inserted / removed, and the tine portion 104 is deformed or broken, or the connector 100 is lifted. Therefore, as shown in FIG.
Another holding metal plate 110 fixed to both ends of 102 is fixed to the housing 102 by press fitting or the like, and the other end is fixed to the circuit board 106.
Solder and secure it to the land 112 of the housing 102
Fixing strength to the circuit board 106 is reinforced. At this time, since the metal plate 110 is usually surface-mounted, it is extended to both sides of the housing 102. When a plurality of housings are arranged adjacent to each other on the circuit board, there is a problem in that they cannot be arranged at a high density because of the protruding portion. In addition, it is difficult to form and maintain the tinned portion 104 and the soldered portion of the metal plate 110 on the same surface.

As a conventional example of an FFC connector, a connector 150 disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 61-131382 is known as shown in FIG. With this connector 150, in order to hold the flat cable 151 in contact with the terminal 154 in the housing 152, the flat cable 151 is
An insulative slider 158 having a tongue 156 that is pressed against and sandwiched by 154 is used. The slider 158 is held in the housing by frictional force with the flat cable 151, or an elastic arm 160 formed integrally with the slider.
And the housing 152 are retained by engaging in a concavo-convex manner. The connector 150 has a weak holding force, and even when an elastic arm is used, the slider and the housing are fixed by soldering flux or the engaging portion is formed for each housing. When using a connector, it is difficult to make it compact and high-density. There was a problem.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a durable and highly reliable connector for a flat cable in which a plurality of housings can be arranged adjacent to each other in high density according to the number of signal lines to be connected.

[0006]

The present invention includes at least one leading edge.
A flat U-shaped metal cover having elastic latch arms and side walls fixed to the circuit board on both sides of the flat plate, and a flat cable tip inserted inside the metal cover. At least one housing having an insertion hole and a plurality of terminals connected to the flat cable in the insertion hole, and the distal end portion of the flat cable slidably arranged on the front surface of the housing. A slider having a tongue sandwiched between
The slider has an engaging portion that is engaged with and held by the latch arm of the metal cover.

[0007]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT A preferred embodiment of the present invention will now be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 shows a state in which a flat cable connector 1 according to the present invention is attached to a circuit board 2. The flat cable connector 1 comprises a metal cover 4, a plurality of modular insulating housings 6 arranged therein, and a slider 10 which is engaged and held by a latch arm 8 of the metal cover 4.

The metal cover 4 has a plurality of elastic latch arms 8 formed integrally with a substantially rectangular flat plate portion (or top portion) 14. The tip portion 12 of each latch arm 8 projects forward and upward from the front edge 16 of the flat plate portion 14 as shown in the plan view of FIG. In this particular embodiment, eight latch arms 8 are formed in line along the longitudinal direction of the flat plate portion 14. Each latch arm 8 has an opening 20 with which an engagement protrusion (engagement portion) 18 of the slider 10 engages. The latch arm 8 is formed by a shearing portion (or slit) 22 formed on the flat plate portion 14 so as to be elastically bendable in the vertical direction from the flat plate portion 14 to facilitate engagement / disengagement with the engagement protrusion 18 of the slider 10. There is. The metal cover 4 has side walls 24 extending from both ends of the flat plate portion 14 toward the circuit board 2, and a plurality of tabs 26 for SMT are bent at right angles to the side walls 24 at the contact portion with the circuit board 2. Has been formed. The metal cover 4 is soldered and fixed to lands (not shown) formed on the circuit board 2 by the tabs 26. 3, the rear surface of the metallic cover 4 is partially bent towards the circuit board 2 at the rear of the housing 6 in this particular embodiment.

The housing 6 is arranged between the metal cover 4 and the circuit board 2 in FIG. In this particular embodiment, eight are arranged in parallel. Sliders 10 are arranged on the front surface of each housing 6 so as to be slidable with respect to the housing 6. On the front surface of the slider 10, an opening 30 for inserting the flat cable 29, which is shown by a virtual line in the figure, is formed to guide the flat cable 29 into the housing 6. The slider 10 is engaged with the metal cover 4 by engaging the engaging protrusion 18 with the latch arm 8.

Next, the housing 6 will be described with reference to the sectional view of FIG.
The relationship between the slider 10 inserted therein and the terminal 32 held in the housing 6 will be described in detail. The housing 6 has a cavity 34 into which the terminal 32 is inserted and a groove 36 formed below the cavity 34. The groove 36 is formed inward from the rear wall 76 of the housing 6. The cavity 34 has a size such that the terminal 32 is accommodated therein and the terminal 32 can freely bend when the flat cable 29 is inserted. The cavities 34 are formed corresponding to the terminals 32, four in this particular embodiment. The partition wall of each cavity 34 is communicated by a notch 85 so that the flat cable 29 and the tongue piece 64 can be inserted. The upper wall 86 and the bottom wall 88 of the cavity 34 facing each other are formed so as to have a small gap, and prevent the terminal 32, particularly the contact arm 40, from swinging laterally when the flat cable 29 is inserted.

The terminal 32 used in this specific embodiment is formed by stamping and forming a plate-shaped metal, and is a contact arm that extends upward from the holding portion 38 held in the housing 6 and the rear portion thereof and further bends and extends forward. Having 40. A lance 42 is formed in the holding portion 38 at a position corresponding to the groove 36 of the housing 6. The lance 42 is formed by cutting and raising the metal plate of the holding portion 38, and when the terminal 32 is inserted into the cavity 34 from the rear side, the lance 42 is engaged with the groove 36 of the cavity 34 to prevent the backward movement. Further, the side edges 44 on both sides of the lance 42 are restricted from moving in the vertical direction, that is, in the direction orthogonal to the circuit board 2 by the opposing inner walls 46 in the groove 36. A tine portion 48 that projects from the housing 6 and hangs down toward the circuit board 2 is formed on the rear portion of the holding portion 38, and is surface-mounted by soldering to a circuit (not shown) formed on the circuit board 2. It An extension portion 50 extending from above the holding portion 38 toward the insertion hole 28 is formed, and the extension portion 50 is in contact with the base 52 at the upper portion of the housing 6. The contact arm 40 extends upward from the holding portion 38 and extends toward the insertion hole 28 by the curved portion 54. The tip portion 56 of the contact arm 40 is formed with an inclined surface 58 for guiding the tip end of the flat cable 29 to be inserted and a contact point 60 for connecting with a conductor of the flat cable 29 (not shown). The contact arm 40 is configured to elastically bend upward when the flat cable 29 is inserted.

The slider 10 is provided with an opening provided in the approximate center thereof.
The flat cable 29 is configured to be inserted from 30. The opening 30 is formed with an inclined surface 62 that guides the tip of the flat cable 29 such that the opening 30 becomes narrower toward the inside. The slider 10 is formed with a tongue piece 64 that is inserted into the housing 6 adjacent to the lower end of the opening 30. The tongue piece 64 is formed of a bottom surface 68 perpendicular to the abutting surface 66, a top surface 70 adjacent to the opening 38 and extending parallel to the bottom surface 68, and an inclined surface 72 inclined from the top surface 70 to the bottom surface 68 side, and a tapered tip portion. Has 84. The inserted flat cable 29 is clamped between the upper surface 70 and the contact 60 of the contact arm 40. The bottom surface 68 of the tongue piece 64 holds the holding portion 38 and the extension portion 50 of the terminal 32 between the upper and lower bases 52 of the housing 6 to prevent the terminal 32 from rising.

The metal cover 4 covers the upper wall 74 of the housing 6 and is bent downward along the rear wall 76. An engagement protrusion 18 provided on the upper portion of the slider 10 is engaged with the engagement opening 20 of the latch arm 8. The engagement projection 18 has a top surface 78 and a beveled surface 80 sloping therefrom toward the abutting surface 66. When the slider 10 is slid from the left side toward the housing 6 in the drawing, the slope 80 is curved to the upper side of the latch arm 8.
When 82 is pressed upward and the top surface 78 enters the opening 20, the latch arm 8 elastically returns to hold the engaging protrusion 18 in the opening 20 and hold the slider 10.

The flat cable connector 1 is connected to the circuit board 2
In order to mount on the circuit board 2 the required number of housings 6
Place it in the specified position. At that time, the tine portion 48 of the terminal 32 extending from the housing 6 is positioned so as to be aligned with the circuit of the circuit board 2. The tongue 64 of the slider 10 is partially inserted into the housing 6. The metal cover 4 is then placed over the housing 6 and its tab 26 is aligned with the land of the circuit board 2. Then, it is soldered in the final surface mounting process.

The number and shape of the housings 6 are not limited to this particular embodiment, but various types are conceivable. For example, the housing 6 may be one, and the shape may be such that one housing has a plurality of engaging protrusions. Accordingly, the housing 6 may have a wide range of dimensions corresponding to the plurality of the specific embodiment.

[0017]

The flat cable connector of the present invention has a substantially U-shaped metal cover which has an elastic latch arm and is attached to a circuit board, and at least one metal cover which is disposed in the metal cover and holds terminals. Since the slider includes the housing and the slider that is inserted into the housing together with the flat cable, and the slider has the engaging portion that engages with the latch arm, the following effects are obtained.

That is, the flat cable connector of the present invention is characterized by the use of an integral metal cover having both functions of holding the modular housing and latching the slider. As a module structure, a plurality of housings can be surface-mounted in a close contact state in a direction orthogonal to the flat cable and can be arranged at a high density. The mounting of the housing on the circuit board can be reinforced at once by a metal cover having a simple structure, so that it is not necessary to provide a reinforcing means for each module. The latch arm is made of metal and is durable against many insertions and removals and external force. Since the latch arm and the slider are securely engaged with each other, the FFC does not easily come off even if an external force is applied to the FFC.

The housings placed in the metallic cover may be selectively placed, and more than one housing with different widths can be used. Therefore, it is possible to use a plurality of flat cables of various widths, and the application range is extremely wide.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a front view showing a state in which a flat cable connector is attached to a circuit board.

FIG. 2 is a plan view of the flat cable connector of FIG. 1 viewed from above.

3 is a sectional view showing a section 3-3 of the flat cable connector of FIG.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing a conventional SMT type connector.

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view showing a conventional flat cable connector.

[Explanation of symbols]

 4 Metal cover 6 Housing 8 Latch arm 10 Slider 14 Flat plate part 16 Front edge 18 Engagement part 24 Side wall 28 Insert hole 32 Terminal 64 Tongue piece

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A substantially U-shaped metal cover having a flat plate portion provided with at least one elastic latch arm on a front edge and side walls fixed to a circuit board on both sides thereof, and a metal cover inside the metal cover. At least 1 is arranged and has an insertion hole into which the tip of the flat cable is inserted and a plurality of terminals connected to the flat cable in the insertion hole.
Individual housings and a slider having a tongue slidably disposed on the front surface of the housing and sandwiching the tip end portion of the flat cable between the terminal and the terminal, wherein the slider is the metal cover. A connector for a flat cable, which has an engaging portion that is engaged and held by a latch arm.